India getting more medals in the Paralympic than Olympics: India has created a sensation by winning more than 20 medals in Paris Paralympics, which has surpassed the figure of 19 medals of Tokyo Paralympics-2020. This number of medals in Paris Paralympics is also surprising because in London Paralympics (2012), India had only one medal in its account, after which only 4 medals came in Rio-2016. On the other hand, if we talk about Olympics, then India has never been able to go beyond 7 medals (Tokyo-2020) in any one season of this great sports event, whereas this time there was a rain of medals in Paris Paralympics. Paralympics is a competition for athletes with physical, intellectual or visual impairment.
The main reason for the huge jump in medals in Paralympics is the increasing number of players participating in it. Talking about the last few Paralympics, 19 players from India participated in Rio and won 4 medals including 2 gold medals. After this, 54 para athletes from India participated in Tokyo Paralympics. In this, India won 19 medals including 5 gold medals. And now in Paris Paralympics, the number of athletes has increased to 84. Obviously, as the number of players increased, the number of medals also increased. India has won 27 medals so far including 6 gold medals till 6 September.
India participated in 12 sports in Paris, while in Tokyo Indian players participated in only 9 sports. India participated in three new sports in Paris – para-cycling, para-rowing and blind judo.
Women athletes have outperformed men at the Indian Paralympics. For example, all four badminton medals in Tokyo were won by men (Pramod Bhagat, Krishna Nagar, Suhas Yathiraj and Manoj Sarkar). In Paris, three women – Thulasimati Murugesan, Nitya Sri Sivan and Manisha Ramdas – reached the podium, while only two men won medals.
Interestingly, India got its first female medal winner in the form of Deepa Malik in 2016 and now 9 women have won medals in Paris.
India is definitely on the right track, but there is still a lot to be done. India does not have participants in almost half the events. Only one participant from India took part in swimming at the Paris Paralympics.
It is clear that more medals have started coming in Paralympics than in Olympics. It is also true that Olympics cannot be compared with Paralympics. Still, when it comes to statistics, the fact that more medals have come in Paralympics than in Olympics definitely draws attention.
Main reasons for better performance in Paralympics –
1. More focus and investment on para-sports
In recent years, the Indian government and the Paralympic Committee have taken concrete steps to identify, train and support para athletes. This includes increased funding, coaching resources and infrastructure specifically for para-sports. Rs 74 crore was allocated for the Paris Paralympics, while only Rs 26 crore was allocated for the Tokyo Paralympic cycle.
At the basic level, Khelo India Para Games started only last year. The Khelo India campaign also helped. There was improvement in SAI (Sports Authority of India) and PCI (Paralympic Committee of India). Earlier, para sports were seen as NGOs, but now it is considered a hardcore sport, overall it is now considered a parallel sport.
India’s involvement in para games has also increased. An example of this was the International Paralympic World Cup, which was organized in Delhi this year. It was praised all over the world, this event organized by PCI (Paralympic Committee of India) was also declared the best by IPC (International Paralympic Committee).
2. Less competition internationally
Compared to the Olympics, the group of major athletes participating in the Paralympics is much smaller. Especially in those disciplines where India excels, such as para-athletics. This makes it relatively easier for Indian athletes to qualify and win medals. After the intervention of SAI, the Sports Ministry, the participation of sports in the Paralympics has increased. Trainers and support staff have also increased.
3. Classification System
The aim of the Paralympic classification system is to ensure fair competition by bringing athletes of similar ability into one group. This can benefit Indian athletes who have a variety of physical problems.
At the same time, the Paralympic Authority of India (PCI) has developed, now a proper chart of the Olympian players is made so that it can be decided how those players are to play. There is an emphasis on medical classification, after which the athlete gets a license to play. Then the player’s record is uploaded on the international website. Only after this, a decision is taken as to which category the player will play in. There is a medical grouping.
4. The passion and determination of para-athletes
Many Indian Paralympic athletes have overcome significant physical, economic and social challenges to reach the top of their sport. This dedication and determination is leading to excellent performance. This can be understood with an example, India’s first female Paralympic medalist Deepa Malik won a medal in 2016 at the age of 46. Then her victory was called magic. But behind this, it has to be understood that along with Deepa’s hard work and dedication, people like conditioning coach, trainer, support staff were made available to her. Facilities like transport were also made available to her.
5. Better sports science and coaching
India’s Paralympic program has benefited from increased investment in sports medicine, training techniques and experienced coaching – which has helped para-athletes maximize their potential. The rules of NADA (National Anti-Doping Agency) have been translated into Hindi and distributed to the players in simple language, so that the players know which things are prohibited. Its course capsule was created during Tokyo. Now para athletes have been connected with information technology. The players have benefited from this, now para athletes are preparing themselves on the basis of international standards.
The efforts being made for years to improve sports are starting to show results. India’s increasing medal haul in the Paralympics is a result of this. Before leaving for Paris, it was believed that this time Indian para athletes will not bring less than 25 medals. Ultimately this target was also achieved. However, due to these encouraging figures, Olympics cannot be compared to Paralympics, where India’s medal count has never been in double digits. Yes, it is certain that our Olympic players can definitely take inspiration from the determined performance of para-athletes, who crumble under pressure even before reaching the medal.
India’s medallists at Paris Paralympics 2024
1. Avani Lekhara (Shooting)- Gold Medal, Women’s 10m Air Rifle (SH1)
2. Mona Agarwal (Shooting)- Bronze Medal, Women’s 10m Air Rifle (SH1)
3. Preeti Pal (Athletics)- Bronze Medal, Women’s 100m Race (T35)
4. Manish Narwal (Shooting)- Silver Medal, Men’s 10m Air Pistol (SH1)
5. Rubina Francis (Shooting)- Bronze Medal, Women’s 10m Air Pistol (SH1)
6. Preeti Pal (Athletics)- Bronze Medal, Women’s 200m Race (T35)
7. Nishad Kumar (Athletics)- Silver Medal, Men’s High Jump (T47)
8. Yogesh Kathuniya (Athletics)- Silver Medal, Men’s Discus Throw (F56)
9. Nitesh Kumar (Badminton)- Gold Medal, Men’s Singles (SL3)
10. Manisha Ramdas (Badminton)- Bronze Medal, Women’s Singles (SU5)
11. Thulasimathi Murugesan (Badminton)- Silver Medal, Women’s Singles (SU5)
12. Suhas L Yathiraj (Badminton)- Silver Medal, Men’s Singles (SL4)
13. Sheetal Devi-Rakesh Kumar (Archery)- Bronze Medal, Mixed Compound Open
14. Sumit Antil (Athletics) – Gold Medal, Men’s Javelin Throw (F 64 Category)
15. Nitya Sri Sivan (Badminton)- Bronze Medal, Women’s Singles (SH6)
16. Deepti Jeevanjee (Athletics)- Bronze Medal, Women’s 400m (T20)
17. Mariyappan Thangavelu (Athletics)- Bronze Medal, Men’s High Jump (T63)
18. Sharad Kumar (Athletics) – Silver Medal, Men’s High Jump (T63)
19. Ajit Singh (Athletics) – Silver Medal, Men’s Javelin Throw (F46)
20. Sundar Singh Gurjar (Athletics) – Bronze Medal, Men’s Javelin Throw (F46)
21. Sachin Sarjerao Khilari (Athletics) – Silver Medal, Men’s Shot Put (F46)
22. Harvinder Singh (Archery)- Gold Medal, Men’s Individual Recurve Open
23. Dharambir (Athletics)- Gold Medal, Men’s Club Throw (F51)
24. Pranav Surma (Athletics)- Silver Medal, Men’s Club Throw (F51)
25. Kapil Parmar (Judo) – Bronze Medal, Men’s 60kg (J1)
26. Praveen Kumar (Athletics)- Gold Medal, Men’s High Jump (T44)
27. Hokato Hotose Sema (Athletics Men) – Bronze Medal, Shot Put (F57)
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